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MST3K 819 - Invasion of the Neptune Men
The Movie Synopsis Slow-moving aliens from the planet Neptune, wearing nosecone-shaped space helmets, attempt to invade Earth in a winged rocketship. But they are thwarted by a mysterious superhero called "Space Chief," who flies around in a rocket-propelled car. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055562/plotsummary No relation to Prince of Space. We swear. As with the Gamera movies and Time of the Apes, very young and apparently orphaned Japanese children have unfettered access to all sorts of things that would be completely off limits in America and which, hopefully, are off-limits in real world Japan. Information *Many of the invasion scenes in Tokyo featured stock footage of bombings and explosions from World War II Japan (as evidenced by the giant billboard of Adolf Hitler). *One of the boys owns a toy Robbie the Robot from Forbidden Planet 1956). http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055562/trivia The Episode Host Segments Prologue: Tom and Crow are disgusted to learn about eyelash mites and decide to get rid of the ones Mike has. Segment One: The Bots send the nanites to destroy the mites, scorning Mike like it was his idea when things go south. Meanwhile, The Mad Goth, AKA Bobo arrives, making Pearl and Brain Guy want to commit suicide, until Brain Guy convinces Pearl to save Bobo by telling her that Bobo ruining time and space would mean the end of Chicken in a Biskit. Segment Two: Mike confuses the bots by telling them about Noh Theater. Segment Three: Tom comes down with a bad case of Roji Panty complex. Meanwhile, Pearl and Brain Guy unsuccessfully make Bobo remember who he really is. Segment Four: Mike and the Bots are going to lose their sanity when they get a visitor - Krankor! Closing (Segment Five): Mike and the Bots read suggestions from the suggestion box, all insulting Japan. Meanwhile, Pearl and Brain Guy hit Bobo with a giant slate of rock, making him remember who he is, resulting in him, Pearl, and Brain Guy getting thrown into the dungeon. Stinger: "Aaaah! What's that?" Quotes & References *''"Starring Santa! Speed Racer! Shonen Knife! Sailor Moon!"'' Speed Racer is a 60's anime series about a crime-fighting auto racer (which was a modest success in its native Japan and is actually a much bigger staple of American pop culture); Shonen Knife is an all-female Japanese rock band; Sailor Moon is an anime about a team of teenage heroines who wear sailor suit-esque costumes (which was a really big deal in Japan, having received two revivals, one animated and one live action). *''"Paul is a dead man! Miss him, miss him!"'' A reference to the bizarre conspiracy theory that emerged in the late 1960s that musician and member of The Beatles, Paul McCartney, had in fact died and been replaced with a double. The Beatles supposedly "told" their fans this using hidden messages and backwards masking on their later albums. (Paul is Dead) *''"Thomas the Tank Engine was very cross with Japan and felt he must resort to carpet bombing."'' Based on the children's TV series of Thomas the Tank Engine, ''and another trademark MST3K instance of basing a whole bit around something's vague resemblance to something. In this case the Neptunians' ship. *"Enjoy music from "Triumph of the Will."'' Triumph of the Will''was an infamous Nazi propaganda film from 1935. *Servo:"They took out the Hitler Building! Where's everybody gonna go to see Hitler memorabilia?"'' *Crow:"All the Hitler rides and games! The Hitler salt and pepper shakers..." *Mike:"That great restaurant, The Bunker, it's gone, you sons of a...!" *Crow:"What's next? The Mussolini Mall?" *Servo:"Followed by the Pinochet Petting Zoo?" '' *"Hey, guys, it's turning into The Magnificent Ambersons!"'' The Magnificent Ambersons was a 1942 film by Orson Welles, starring Joseph Cotten. *''"It's been a hard day's night..."'' Shots of the Japanese boys running down a flight of stairs inspire this reference to the Beatles' A Hard Day's Night. A similar scene appears in the group's film of the same name. *Kid - "I want to show you something really big." Mike - "It's Crystal Gayle's curling iron." Crystal Gayle is a singer known for her extremely long hair. * "Space Chief is actually Racer X, Speed's brother!" Another Speed Racer reference. The mysterious Racer X was indeed secretly Speed's older brother. Not so secret to the audience, as the narrator would point his true identity out in every single episode (as Mike does here). Trivia *The "Noh Theater" segment is referenced in The Grudge Rifftrax episode. Category:MST3K Episodes Category:Season 8 Category:Foreign Film Category:Unreleased Episodes Category:Unrated movies Category:Episodes directed by Michael J. Nelson